Oksana Grigorieva forfeited $375K when she broke her confidentiality agreement

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Here are some new photos of Oksana Grigorieva this weekend, going to a yoga class. Girl, stop messing with the yoga mat and get a J-O-B. As we discussed earlier last week, Mel Gibson’s former girlfriend/victim Oksana is broke. Totally, completely broke. Filing-for-bankruptcy broke. At one point, Oksana could have been paid $15 million to just go away and stop making Mel look so bad, but refused the settlement offer (thinking she could get more if she took Mel to court), and then she ended up only getting $750,000 spread out over five years. Apparently, all of that money just goes towards her lawyers’ fees though. Legal bills will make you go broke every damn time! But as it turns out, that wasn’t the only thing fishy with Oksana’s financial situation – she had to say buh-bye to $375,000 (half of her settlement) because she violated the confidentiality agreement Mel’s lawyers made her sign:

Oksana Grigorieva — the woman who Mel Gibson struck in the mouth — just lost hundreds of thousands of bucks because of her big mouth … by violating her confidentiality agreement. … court sources tell TMZ.

It all has to do with an interview she did in October with Howard Stern. Oksana — who promised in her settlement agreement with Mel she would say NOTHING about him publicly — blabbed about the actor.

In the Stern Interview:

— Howard sympathizes about her problems with Mel, telling her she has to go forward in life. She refers to her “painful and dark” experience and says now she wants to help others.

— Howard asks if Mel wined and dined her. She says it’s too painful to even talk about.

— Howard talks about how amazing the famous audio tapes are, and Oksana responds, “Life happens … I’m still catching up on the humor part.”

— Howard, who referenced portions of Mel’s rants during the interview, told her a woman shouldn’t be treated that way, especially the mother of your child. She said, “Thank you.”

Apparently that was enough for a judge, because court sources tell us, hizzoner ruled Oksana was never supposed to talk about Mel — even obtusely — and as a result she forfeited the remaining installments of her $750,000 settlement. We’re told she was still owed half — $375,000 … money she now will NOT get.

TMZ broke the story … Oksana has filed for bankruptcy. Pretty amazing, since Mel initially offered her $15 MILLION but she rejected it.

[From TMZ]

I understand that some of you still consider Oksana to be some kind of “golddigger” but I stopped thinking of her that way once I heard all of those recordings of Mel screaming abuse at her. My take is that she DID deserve that money because it was basically combat pay. But even though I still have lingering sympathy for Oksana, I think we can safely say that this whole thing is a #GolddiggerFail or #GolddiggerDont. First of all, NEVER sign the confidentiality agreement. Never! Second of all, if you sign the confidentiality agreement and you really want to break it, don’t break it giving away a free interview with Howard Stern, for the love of God. If you have to break your agreement, do it because you’re writing a tell-all book and you’re getting a seven-figure advance.

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Photos courtesy of Fame/Flynet.

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66 Responses to “Oksana Grigorieva forfeited $375K when she broke her confidentiality agreement”

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  1. Lee says:

    Lawyers are scum. A lawyer probably convinced her to reject the first offer – hoping for a bigger payday with a lawsuit. And a lawyer probably convinced her the confidentiality agreement was a good idea. And who got the biggest payday in the end? Lawyers. I think it is just very sad. I feel bad for her.

    • Maureen says:

      If the stories are true, she went through 20 lawyers to finally reach this pathetic “deal”. I don’t think it was lawyers doing her wrong. I think it was Oksana being arrogant, emotional, bitter, and disagreeable which in turn made it impossible for her to listen to good advice. She kept firing lawyers who didn’t tell her what she wanted to hear.

      • MrsB says:

        Exactly. I remember her going through many lawyers and stories coming out about how difficult of a client she was. She wouldn’t listen to anybody. Nobody deserves to be talked to the way Mel talked to her, but I just can’t muster up any sympathy for her.

      • juls says:

        She went through 40 lawyers and all that money went to them, why did’nt she take the 15 million dollars.

    • GoodNamesAllTaken says:

      Are you kidding? The lawyer would get a certain percentage of 15 million dollars without doing any work. Believe me, they begged her to take the offer. And I think 15 million was fair, considering what he did to her. But she was greedy and stupid and thought she could get more.

      Saying lawyers are scum is such an ignorant statement. Some lawyers are scum. Some preachers and priests and doctors and police and bricklayers are scum. But I was raised by a lawyer, who was one of the most honorable, honest and gentle persons on the planet, and have been surrounded by lawyers all my life. MOST of them are smart, hardworking and honest. Lawyers are bound by what the client wants and the law provides. So don’t blame them when the client is greedy and stupid. There’s really nothing they can do about it but give them good advice. If they choose not to take it, it’s on them.

      • Maureen says:

        +1 @GoodNamesTaken

        I don’t have any lawyers in my family, but I have a couple lawyer friends and one of my ex-boyfriends is a lawyer. They’re all really good people. There’s no real personal investment for me in defending lawyers, but I just get really tired of hearing them demonized.

      • GoodNamesAllTaken says:

        Thanks, Maureen. I know I am overly defensive about it, but it just feels like a stab in the heart when I hear that. Every profession has bad apples, but people demonize lawyers because they don’t want to take responsibility for their own actions. Uh oh I’m doing it again.

      • Lee says:

        You’re right – I shouldn’t have said lawyers are scum – that is an inflammatory statement, and I really don’t believe they’re all scum. I have run into a couple of bad ones in my day, but that was my bad luck at a vulnerable time in my life. I think my initial impression here was a reflection of that. If she went through 20 lawyers, I think that says more about her.

      • ToodySezHey says:

        *slow claps for GoodNames*

      • GoodNamesAllTaken says:

        Thank you, Lee. And I shouldn’t have been so emotional and rude to you. You had every right to come back at me with anger, but instead you tried to understand, and that was generous of you. I understand how your impression of an entire group of people can be tainted by a few, especially when you are attacked while feeling vulnerable, and how that could leave scars and bad feelings. I hope things are better for you now.

      • Frida_K says:

        Right on, GoodNamesAllTaken!

        People are so snarky about lawyers…but wait until you really need one. When you really need a good lawyer, you are grateful for the hard work he or she will do for you. The one that comes to my mind as I write this deserves every bit of the money he earns because he works endless hours, is incredibly knowledgable about the law, and is unwavering when it comes to getting the best outcome for his clients.

        As to Oksana…she’s stupid. I have no doubt that her first rounds of lawyers all told her the same thing, and then she found someone like that guy Lindsay Lohan replaced Shawn Holley with, and voilà…here she is now, going to yoga class to try to relax during her bankruptcy nightmare.

        SMH

      • Anthea says:

        Well said!

      • Size Does Matter says:

        @GoodNames – On behalf of myself and any other CB-devoted lawyers out there, very well put. Thank you.

      • Maureen says:

        @GoodNames is on FIRE today! She posted some excellent commentary over on the Beyonce thread also that impressed a few readers, myself included.

      • jjva says:

        What a lovely respectful back-and-forth this was to read. I had no idea so much thoughtful communication was possible on the internet. 🙂 And I was raised by lawyers (my parents met in a law school study group), so I’m admittedly biased, but I think there are some good ones in the profession!

      • Obsidian says:

        I agree with greedy and stupid. I dont think a job is her priority. She’s probably on the prowl for another sugar daddy. She thought she hit the jackpot with Mel Gibson.

    • Nikki says:

      No the lawyers who got her the $15 million deal promptly served her with a $1.5 million bill after she fired them. Oksana wasn’t married to Mel. She wasn’t entitled to spousal support. That $15 million was for the “pain and suffering and her silence” – the deal also included child support. She got greedy or stupid or some of combination of both.

      • Nina W says:

        Lawyers fees are often a percentage of the settlement and the lawyer receives only that percentage of the money regardless if the settlement is $15 mill or only $750 k.

  2. Gretchen says:

    I don’t really have much of an opinion on the matter, but this sentence by TMZ just seems like such an inappropriate and flippant way to talk about domestic violence: “Oksana Grigorieva — the woman who Mel Gibson struck in the mouth — just lost hundreds of thousands of bucks because of her big mouth …”

    • Kiddo says:

      TMZ is a bitchy misogynist frat house.

    • GoodNamesAllTaken says:

      Wow, that is really offensive, inappropriate and cruel.

    • Nina W says:

      I agree TMZ is gross, as usual, but staying in an abusive relationship with some famous rage junkie alcoholic in order to collect clandestine evidence of abuse for a borderline black-mail pay-out is also repulsive. There is no excuse for Mel, he is vile and disgusting, but this woman hasn’t done herself any favors by her own behavior.

  3. Patricia says:

    This was a vey dumb move. But does this mean that now she can say “screw it” and write a book? She would get plenty of money and I would read that mess in one sitting.
    I just feel so bad for the little baby girl in this mess. Hopefully Oksana is a sweet and loving mother.

    • Lee says:

      Yes, this^. Perhaps there’s a silver lining to this mess. If the original deal’s off now, she could go for it. Perhaps Mel will offer a second payday to stop it. Regardless, I feel bad for the child – the publicity from the get-go was terrible.

    • eliza says:

      If she speaks further she runs the risk of having to repay Gibson monies already received. Just because she spoke does not mean she can just throw caution to the wind now without further financial repercussions.

      • Nikkie says:

        I say write the book. It’s her only other opportunity to make a big amount of money. If she gets $3-4 Million from the deal and has to pay back Mel’s $400K, she will still come out ahead. Maybe she can open the door to more opportunities with her increased profile.

        Mel is going to stay lowdown for a few more years but trust he will come back to direct a hit movie financed by himself. He is a White male with money, Americas will forgive him eventually.

    • MrsBPitt says:

      I think she intentionally broke the confedentiality agreement, without giving anything away…now, she can right a tell-all for millions…be on every talk show promoting it (getting that elusive fame she is dying for)…this woman is NOT stupid…whats a piddling $350,000, against millions for a book….

      • bluhare says:

        This is what I’m thinking too. And the bankruptcy filing is a way for her to say “girl gotta pay the bills” when she gets her advance.

        UNLESS confidentiality agreements have a “forever” clause?

      • Samantha25 says:

        I doubt she’ll get millions, at least nothing close to the $15 million settlement. Probably $3 or $4 million tops. I don’t think people care that much about Mel anymore and a lot of tapes/info has already been released. Even if something new came out, I doubt people would find it shocking considering it’s Mel.

    • kibbles says:

      I can’t stand this woman and don’t believe she deserves $15 million for putting up with Mel’s abusive behaviour expecting it would set her for life with a million dollar settlement. She’s an idiot for thinking she could get more than $15 mil then ending up with $750k and breaking the confidentiality agreement. At this point she has nothing to lose. Her last option is probably writing a tell all book. I don’t know if a lot of people would care to read her book at this point. She’s been off the radar for a while and everyone knows Mel Gibson is racist, sexist, and crazy. Unless she really brings it and exposes major secrets about Gibson and his family, the book won’t be worth reading. She should still try to write one since she is broke and needs the money.

    • ol cranky says:

      I can’t stand either of these people but I don’t see how finding ways to say she won’t talk about Gibson or their relationship or even saying thank you as she did is actually a violation of her agreement not to speak about him. I hope she can now write a tell all, not that I’d buy it but this was a total BS ruling

      • bluhare says:

        I agree with that, ol cranky. I didn’t think she said anything that hasn’t already been said a million times.

    • Nina W says:

      Legally she would be screwed. If she writes a tell-all now Mel could sue her for all the profits of it. She cannot profit from the violation of her confidentiality agreement if she did, she would be sued and he would win easily.

      • John says:

        No, actually, her breaking of it and being penalized the $375K voids the agreement. It’s like double jeopardy, she can’t be punished more than once for what is essentially a negated/exercised contract.

  4. Kiddo says:

    I don’t understand the black and white approach to everything. Mel Gibson being a maniac doesn’t cancel out the possibility that Oksana Grigorieva was/is a golddigger. Those two things are not mutually exclusive.

    • Maureen says:

      Exactly. Toxic people are often drawn to each other. I bet he didn’t mind her crazy ways when she was doing him day and night, nor did she mind his manic and controlling ways when he was lavishing her with gifts and showing her off in Hollywood circles to raise her profile.

      • Kiddo says:

        Agreed Maureen. As to not taking a lump in cash, everyone assumes that the decision was based on protecting the child, but the other possibility is that she thought she stood to benefit from a great deal of exposure by playing the drama out in the public. Maybe she thought it would boost her music career, because we started to hear her awful recordings right after the Gibson scream-fest.

        The fact that she went on Howard Stern seems to bolster the attention-seeking for profit angle.

    • lisa2 says:

      ITAWY.. Mel is a nut.

      and that being said she played the sh*t out of him and got him on tape showing the world what a nut he was. At that point she was all about getting paid. I think she had a legal team behind her at the time as well. It all ended as it should. Mel is taking care of his daughter financially and she is going to have to get a job to take care of herself. She is getting (according to reports) $20,000 a month. That is a lot of money. So what did she do with all that money to only leave her $10 dollars.

      some women wont’ see $20,000 from the men they had children with in a lifetime. She has and had more than they do.

    • Christin says:

      Agree. I’m not sure how one elevates or cancels out the other.

      With that said, I’m not sure she’s a bright bulb. When asked anything at all related to him, how simple it is to say, “I cannot comment on that.”

    • Baskingshark says:

      ITA! Sometimes, EVERYBODY is an asshole and there are no good guys!

      Good luck to their kid. At this point she has about an 0.001% chance of growing up well adjusted.

      • FingerBinger says:

        I disagree about the kid. Mel sounds like a horrible partner/husband,but he appears to be a decent parent. I’ve never heard anything bad about Mel’s kids with his first wife.

      • Nina W says:

        I don’t know, Mel is the son of a well-known nut job and I can’t imagine the rage we’ve seen him express publicly has not also been lavished on his immediate family. My father was very much like him and there was a public life and a private life and believe you me no one ever let the facade slip in public. There’s no doubt very good reasons why his wife of more than 20 years, a Catholic, finally kicked him to the curb.

    • Tulip Garden says:

      Excellent point! She’s a gold digger and he is an anger monster. Neither one gets my sympathy. I’ll save that for their child.

    • d b says:

      ITA. Oksana IS a gold digger and the sole reason she stayed with Manical Mel is because every time he did something off the wall she added it to a future pay day.

  5. Maureen says:

    Maybe if she hadn’t spent so much on plastic surgery and injections she wouldn’t be broke right now.

  6. Lilacflowers says:

    Dear Oksana, you may want to consider getting a job. You do not seem to have one. We are each responsible for paying our own way through life. Child support is one thing, but nobody else is responsible for supporting you.

    • ScotiaNov says:

      Totally agree. I know a woman older than Oksana, who keeps getting married and divorced, then collecting alimony. She is greedy and has such an entitlement attitude! She hasn’t worked in years, and moans about how “hard” her life is. I had to cut ties with her because she even felt her woman friends owed her special help, money and favors. She was and is a born Taker. Someone with nothing to offer society, nothing to offer anyone else. Just take, take, take.

  7. LAK says:

    #golddigger fail indeed!!

  8. FingerBinger says:

    That was just dumb of her going on Howard Stern. Stern is probably one of the best, also one of the most underrated, interviewers. He’s going to get the story no matter what.

    • MrsBPitt says:

      Not dumb at all…she is only losing $350,000…now that she has voided the contract and more importantly, the confidentiality agreement, she can be paid millions for a tell all book…she is dumb like a fox!

      • Nina W says:

        Violation of confidentiality does not leave you free to blab. In fact it opens you up to litigation that you will lose. She needs to keep her trap shut.

      • d b says:

        that may be what Oksana was thinking, but she if she did, she’s wrong. Mel can keep her in court now for years to come. He has all the $ to play this out. Oksana does not.

    • Bohemia says:

      Agree, Stern has a way about him that seems to make people want to share their secrets!

  9. truthful says:

    She should have taken the 15 milli, smdh.

    I agree, an interview with Howard Stern?? he may have been in on it, probably called Mel and they were laughing about it. I would be kicking myself.

    750,000–I would not have signed a confidentiality agreement
    I kinda feel sorry for her, she did not have anyone guiding her.

    she took a lot of verbal abuse and physical crap off of Mel.

    I’d like to clock him w/my coffee cup right about now.

    • Nina W says:

      She fired twenty lawyers, she’s the problem not the advice she received. BTW, I would pay to watch you clock him with a coffee mug, I would post it on YouTube.

  10. Hiddles forever says:

    This woman is not just a lazy bum, golddigger and so on… She is even dumb! She refused 15million $ and she signed a confidentiality agreement after only getting 750,000$?
    No wonder she is broke now….

  11. LahdidahBaby says:

    My memory may be tricking me, but I could’ve sworn the reason Oksana didn’t take the $15M offer was because of the strings Mel had attached to that offer with regard to their little daughter. I forget the deets, but as I recall, didn’t Mel want the daughter with him a lot more of the time than Oksana wanted or felt was good for the little girl, considering that it hadn’t been that long since Mel had punched her (Oksana) and threatened to kill her and bury her beneath the rose garden? I’m not saying she isn ‘t a golddigger, only that at the time it DID seem inadvisable for such a violent man to have unlimited or equal access to a vulnerable little girl.

    • Tulip Garden says:

      Gibson was/is crazy and dead wrong for the way he treated this woman. I wonder if she wasn’t actively trying to get pregnant to insure that she got to live a certain lifestyle. She had to know he was violent and verbally abusive. Why not save up the money/jewelry/whatever else she received during the relationship and get out with that stuff instead of having a child with him? She has now insured his continued existence in her own life and, worse, much worse, this is the father that she chose for her child 🙁

    • Nikki says:

      No I recall she fired the lawyers who got her the $15 million and they called her unreasonable. The $750K came out of arbitration was it not? She had no choice. She tried to back peddle afterwards and get money for her son whom Mel pushed, and the courts said no. That $15 million dollar deal also had a separate trust for her son AND child support for her daughter.

      No one ever said why she turned it down and fired her lawyers, but my guess complete silence and turning over ownership of any and all tapes was part of the deal and she said no.

      Lots of men are verbally abusive to their partners and fine with their kids. Courts don’t limit access to abusers if no child abuse occurs. Sadly berating your mom isn’t considered child abuse.

  12. A Fan says:

    She clearly keeps making bad decisions…

  13. jferber says:

    He is NOT a good parent to his children is my opinion. His ex-wife spilled NOTHING about the way he treated her or the children. He verbally abused Oksana’s son, calling the 12 year old boy effeminate and even pushed him onto a table. He is a rage monster and not safe around anybody. I also think Oksana didn’t break the confidentiality agreement with her innocuous comments. It sounded like she demurred. But I do agree she should just go for it now and write a tell-all book. Also, I seem to remember Mel hit his youngest son on the head. It’s blurry in my mind, but I do remember something like that. What’s scary is how well-protected abusive men are and how much shit they get away with for so long.

    • Nina W says:

      I agree he’s an abuser and it’s not limited to the ladies in his life. However violation of a confidentiality agreement does not leave you free to spill the beans. Once you sign that damn thing you are legally screwed if you start talking. If she keeps talking she will just dig herself a deeper legal hole, she is not allowed to profit from talking about him.

  14. jane16 says:

    Well said Kaiser. Agree with you 100%.

  15. ScotiaNov says:

    I do not believe in alimony at all.

  16. jwoolman says:

    The problem with a tell-all book is who’s doing the telling. I’m still waiting for her to tell us how exactly she took the battery out of her iPhone to shut off the ringer when he was repeatedly drunk calling her. (Google iPhone plus battery replacement if you want to know why I’m so interested.) Me, since I don’t keep tools plus a soldering iron by my bed – I would have just hit the button to zero the volume or (being well prepared for such things) set the phone number to silent in contacts (I have a free silent ringtone). This isn’t a sources say thing, I heard her say this in an interview with my own two little ears. She took the battery out of her iphone…

  17. moo says:

    Totally broke, but still going out for Yoga classes? hmmmmm…………. me smells BS